Columbia, S,C., August 24, 1999 ... Dr. Ken Libertoff, executive director of the
Vermont Association for Mental Health and a national expert on insurance parity, will be
the dinner speaker at the S.C. Department of Mental Health's agency-wide meeting Friday,
Sept. 10, at 7 p.m. The conference is being held at the Sheraton Hotel and
Conference Center, I-20 and Bush River Road in Columbia.

Libertoff received his Ph.D. in clinical psychology and public practice from
Harvard University in 1978. He currently serves on the Governor's Vermont Committee
on Children's Mental Health and is the recipient of numerous awards including the State
Advocate of the Year Award in 1997 from the National Mental Health Association,
Washington, D.C., and the Public Policy Award of Excellence from the National Council for
Community Behavioral Healthcare, Chicago, in 1998. He has lectured all over the
United States and Canada and is the author of many publications.

Vermont is a leading state in a national effort to achieve insurance parity for mental
health care. Mental health parity laws require health insurers to offer equal
coverage for physical and mental health problems.

The general public is invited to attend this presentation. The registration fee
is $20 and must be paid by Sept. 3. To register, call the Office of Communications,
S.C. Department of Mental Health, 803, 898-8581. Registration deadline is Sept. 3.

The S.C. Department of Mental Health has served the mental health needs of South
Carolina citizens since 1821. Its 6,000 employees and 9,000 volunteers offer
services from 17 community mental health centers and six inpatient hospitals statewide.